NSSA member and former All-American Michael H. Ishikawa, Jr. of La Habra, California, passed away April 3, 2018. He was the husband of Doreen Yuriko Ishikawa and also leaves behind three children and numerous grandchildren.
NSSA member Gary Boeker remembers Mike as a great friend and squadmate. “He always took his time to help other shooters, and he will be missed by all that knew him. He was a true professional and a very good promoter of our sport.”
Boeker met Mike in 2010, and the two started shooting skeet together at Triple B Clays, along with squad members Keith Phelps, Fred Sanders, and Hal Garb. After having shot together at tournaments and fun shoots, the squad decided to make the trip together to the World Shoot in San Antonio in 2011. Mike became an All-American for his shooting in the 2011 season. “Mike always said to me as I was about to step on the station, ‘Gary, get ’em,'” said Boeker.
When Mike was named to the 2012 Krieghoff All-American team, the LA Japanese Daily News wrote a piece about his accomplishment. Read the article here.
The NSSA extends its sympathies to the Ishikawa family and to Mike’s many friends.
NSSA regrets to report that Hall of Famer Doug Burdett lost a courageous battle against cancer on June 13, 2019.
Doug is survived by his wife of 61 years, Margaret Burdett, his shooting companion of many years and husband/wife team partner, with whom he won many titles. Both were inducted into the NSSA Hall of Fame.
Doug was a Master Warrant Officer in the Canadian Air Force and spent many tours in Germany during the cold war years with Margaret, who was also Air Force personnel.
During his shooting career, Doug shot skeet in Europe, the United States, and Canada, attaining many accomplishments, including winning many titles at the World Skeet Championships: six HOA World Championships, ten 12-gauge, five 20-gauge, two 28-gauge, and six .410 titles spread over Open, Military and Husband/Wife categories. Doug and Margaret were inducted into the NSSA Hall of Fame in 1981 as the first couple to be inducted at the same time. He was a member of the All-American Military First Team in 1969 and held a place on the team until 1980, when he retired and was captain of the Military Team in 1974, 1975, 1978, and Co-Captain in 1977 and 1981. He was also a member of the All-American Open Second Team in 1972 and 1973 and won many European Open Championships while posted overseas in the 1970s.
Doug was inducted into the Armed Forces Skeet Association Hall of Fame in 2011, being the only non-American to be inducted. He was also inducted into the Canadian Armed Forces Hall of Fame in 1976 and the Canadian Skeet Shooting Hall of Fame.
Doug was very humble regarding his accomplishments, but he was a key player in Canadian/NSSA skeet shooting over the years. As well as being a winner, he was also an expert stock builder and gunsmith. Doug was always there to offer great advice on improving other shooters’ scores and helping with the mental game of skeet.
Doug had a large circle of friends both in the NSSA, OSSA, and Oshawa Skeet and Gun Club and will be missed by many.
Barbara Thames Bozard, 68, of St. Augustine, Florida, passed away Thursday, April 18, 2019 at Silver Creek Senior Community in St. Augustine following an extended illness.
Barbara was born in Palatka where she grew up, graduating from Palatka Senior High School in 1968, and had been a long-time resident of St. Augustine. She was a life member of the National Skeet Shooting Association and NRA and had shot almost 230,000 registered skeet targets. Within NSSA, Barbara was known for her support of Junior shooters and the Junior World Skeet Championships. She belonged to the St. Augustine Lighthouse Organization and had served as president for two years. She was former president of Junior Service League in St. Augustine from 1989-1990. Barbara was a long-time member of Trinity Episcopal Church in St. Augustine and was a fan of New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Barbara is survived by her husband of eight years, Alton D. “Big Mac” McDonald, her son Fred “Bo” Bozard IV, daughter Letti Bozard, and five grandchildren.
NSSA extends its sympathy to Barbara’s family and many friends.
We are very saddened to report that Don Snyder, former NSSA-NSCA Executive Director, passed away Wednesday, May 30. Don was a World Champion skeet shooter, many-time All-American, and a member of the Armed Forces Skeet Association Hall of Fame.
After retiring from the Air Force, Don began working for NSSA and the National Shooting Complex, filling numerous roles over the years. He served as NSSA Chief Instructor, managed the NSCA 5-stand truck and trailer program, and was the personnel director for the National Shooting Complex. He later became the NSSA Director prior to becoming the Executive Director.
“Don and I started working for the NSSA at around the same time 25 years ago,” current Executive Director, Michael Hampton, Jr. recalled. “He was great to work with and for, and he always wanted what was best for the associations. He loved the game of skeet, having fun, and telling jokes. Not all of his jokes were funny, but man, did he enjoy telling them and laughing at them. He was a co-worker and, more importantly, a friend who will be missed.”
After his retirement from NSSA, Don enjoyed focusing on his skeet game and instructing. He won the Champ of Champs title at the 2012 World Skeet Championships.
The staff of NSSA-NSCA and the National Shooting Complex extend their condolences to Don’s wife, Bertha, his family, and his many friends. He will be missed.
Services for Don Snyder are as follows:
Memorial Service
Wednesday, June 20, 2018, 11:30 a.m.
Porter Loring North Chapel
Procession will follow service for interment in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery with full military honors.Celebration of Life
Wednesday, June 20, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
National Shooting Complex
A meal will be provided. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Amber Schwarz at aschwarz@nssa-nsca.com or 210-688-3371 x 125.
The NSCA Advisory Council has developed and the NSSA Executive Committee has approved a new charter for the National Sporting Clays Association, which is a division of the National Skeet Shooting Association. The charter defines a new governance structure and calls for elections to be held this year. The new governing structure eliminates the Advisory Council and Regional Delegate positions and creates a 15-member Executive Council, with three members from each region, elected from the National Delegate body. Five officers will be elected from the Executive Council. The new governing bodies will take office on January 1, 2019, and serve through December 31, 2020.
Nominations are now being accepted for National Delegates from each state. Remember, Executive Council members must first be elected as National Delegates.The number of National Delegates from each state is determined by the number of members in that state. You can view the number of positions allocated to each state on the nomination form.
While the charter calls for the nomination period to begin July 1, nominations are being opened early due to the new structure. This will allow NSCA more time to inform members of the new charter and for members to determine their plans for possible service. Future elections will open nominations on July 1, per the charter.
You may choose to run for the National Delegate position yourself or nominate another person. However, if you nominate another member, that person must agree to be a candidate. Any candidate/nominee must have the endorsement of five current members of NSCA from the state he or she would represent. The nominee and the five endorsers must sign the nomination form (below) and provide their member numbers. A nomination is not considered valid without those signatures and member numbers.
Only fully-paid, current NSCA members qualify to run for National Delegate; the position is not open to Complimentary Limited Membership (CLM) or Crossfire members (NSSA members registering NSCA targets). Note: Nominees for National Delegate are no longer required to shoot a minimum number of registered targets. Current National Delegates may run for the office again, but they are not automatically placed on the ballot. The nomination / election procedure is the same as for other candidates.
Nominations will be accepted by email or fax. Send nominations to Glynne Moseley, gmoseley@nssa-nsca.com, fax 210-688-3014. All nominations must be received by July 21 at 5:00 p.m. Ballots will be distributed by email during the first week of August for voting via online ballot.
NSSA member and former All-American Michael H. Ishikawa, Jr. of La Habra, California, passed away April 3, 2018. He was the husband of Doreen Yuriko Ishikawa and also leaves behind three children and numerous grandchildren.
